


Simple as Anything

by janeyseymour



Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Found Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:07:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28541538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/janeyseymour/pseuds/janeyseymour
Summary: It’s as simple as anything really- Jane Seymour was not the put together woman she wished she was. Try as she might, she simply was not the perfect person that the beautiful queendom- and even her fellow queens, to an extent-  made her out to be.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 28





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> projection time haha! enjoy whatever this is, and have a lovely day!

It’s as simple as anything really- Jane Seymour was not the put together woman she wished she was. Try as she might, she simply was not the perfect person that the beautiful queendom- and even her fellow queens, to an extent- made her out to be.

\--

When the six were first reincarnated, Jane had quite a hard time adapting to the modern world. Small rectangles that people carried with them constantly in order to connect with others? She couldn’t get over the fact that she didn’t have to struggle with reading and writing handwritten letters as often. Women were allowed to wear pants? The thought at first was completely beyond her. Women were allowed to have jobs? She wouldn’t be forced to marry someone she didn’t love? Women were able to speak up about the hardships they endured during relationships? They wouldn’t get absolutely dragged through the mud for simply existing? She was allowed to be vulnerable outside of her house- outside of her bedroom where no one else could see or hear her tears? Men weren’t simply looking at her with the idea that she would bear their children? Some people didn’t even want children anymore? The twenty-first century absolutely baffled her.

She did her best to adapt to the modern world; she really did. At first, when she learned that she didn’t have to keep every emotion at bay, it was waterworks all the time. It didn’t matter what happened. If someone treated her with basic human decency, the woman would dissolve into tears and thank the person endlessly for treating her kindly. Only when she got strange looks from others in the local coffee shop when she sobbed and thanked the kind barista did she realize that perhaps a grown woman crying hysterically because someone treated her politely was _probably_ socially unacceptable.

As she took on the maternal role in the house (she was more than happy to do so), she realized that most of the mothers she saw out in public looked as though they had their entire lives together. Never did she see a woman with a child looking anything less than perfectly content with her life. Mothers these days had it all figured out- or at least that’s what she told herself. Maybe she knew that behind the facade they weren’t quite as happy as they made themselves out to be. Maybe it was the way she exclusively chose to watch the women who seemed content and not allow herself to see the women in the grocery store who looked like they were at their wits end when their child was throwing a tantrum at the checkout line because they wanted candy. Maybe she chose not to see the mothers who walked around town with spit up on their chest and bags under their eyes because they simply couldn’t have cared less about their appearance at that moment because they were so utterly exhausted. Maybe she did see it and chose to ignore it. All that the third queen knew was she saw women who were dressed to the nines and looking thrilled to have their sweet child with them. That’s all that mattered to Jane- she had to live up to that lifestyle.

As time went on, she learned the ways of the modern world a bit more. She finally figured out the blasted phone without _too_ much help from Katherine- the youngest queen who had wormed her way into Jane’s heart and begun to call her ‘mum’. She was more than happy to be able to wear jeans or even a skirt that showed off a bit of leg without being berated for displaying too much skin. She was happily single and wasn’t planning on changing that any time soon. Men be damned; she was a free woman, and she was going to take advantage of that no matter the amount of men who had tried to pick her up at the bar down the road. She had gotten her emotions in check. No longer did she cry when someone was nice to her. No, instead she grinned at them and thanked them for showing her kindness. 

For as much as she had adapted to the new society she was living in, Jane stuck with her roots of hiding away her emotions in a place where no one could see them: internally. Vulnerability stayed behind closed doors. She had everything figured out. That’s what all of the other mothers did, right? ‘ _If I can even call myself a mother,’_ she would chide herself before remembering that she was a mum in this life. Maybe not to Edward like she had hoped, but to her sweet Katherine. 

\--

It was a known fact that the blonde was the first one to be awake in the house. She liked to see Anna out as she went on her morning run. She basked in the quiet time she and Aragon had before “Hurricane Anne” (Catherine’s words, not hers) came tumbling down the stairs. She liked to have breakfast out on the table by the time Anna would come back from her run- where she would close the door just a bit too loudly and wake up the rest of the house. She absolutely loved seeing all of their sleepy but smiling faces when they saw the love and care that she had put into making breakfast and being able to kiss their foreheads as they gathered at the dining room table. After breakfast was over, she would dance around the house cleaning before preparing for the day’s other work. Clockwork really.

So when one day Jane hadn’t been up and ready to greet Anna before her run and see her off, the fourth queen knocked on her predecessor’s door. 

“Seymour?” she called but got no response. Quietly, she opened the door. The blonde, who was clearly awake, turned over in her bed and sighed.

“I’m awake love. What’s up?”

“I just wanted to make sure you’re okay. You’re usually up by the time I’m ready for my morning run.”

“Oh. I’m just fine dear. Just thinking is all. I suppose I got lost in my thoughts. Do you want me to come down and see you out?” The third queen threw her covers off of her body and began to sit up.

“It’s alright,” Cleves shuffled over to the bed awkwardly. “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

“I’m just dandy dear. Go on your run. Breakfast will be ready by the time you get back, I promise.”

“If you just want to hang out, I can forgo my run and make breakfast?”

“Oh no, I wouldn’t put that on you. I can do it. See?” Jane stood from her mattress and smiled a crooked smile- although it wasn’t her typical smile. Her eyes just didn’t light up the way they usually did. “Off you go dear. I’ll see you when you get back.” She pressed a kiss to the red queen’s forehead, much like she did when she was downstairs and watching her friend run out the door. (Anna of Cleves would never admit it, but she was hoping she would get the morning kiss she usually did when she knocked on the door earlier. Not receiving a kiss before heading out the door would just seem wrong.)

\--

Breakfast went on just fine, the third queen keeping her promise of having the meal on the table before the fourth queen would return. And then, Jane simply excused herself, asking Cathy to clear off the table instead. Of course every queen noticed the out of character behavior from the third queen. Assuming she was going upstairs to change out of her pajamas (yet another odd thing for the others to see in the morning, for the silver queen was usually out of her pajamas by the time the others had walked down), the other five queens were shocked to see the woman plop herself on the couch and reach for the television remote. 

“Is Jane feeling alright?” Cathy asked the fifth queen in a hushed tone as she cleared off the table.

“I- I don’t really know. She seems okay? She made breakfast, right?”

“Yeah, Seymour made breakfast. But, this morning she wasn’t waiting by the front door to watch me leave for my run. She was still in bed,” Cleves threw in.

“That doesn’t sound like Mum,” Kat said worriedly. “Should one of us talk to her?”

“She told me she was fine, but I’m not sure she is,” the red queen admitted.

“Lina, you should talk to her,” Anne suggested. When she got a multitude of reactions from the others, she shrugged. “What? You guys are the two mums of the house? It makes sense that one mum friend would check on the other mum friend.”

“Listen, I’m all for making sure that Jane’s okay,” the first queen paused. “But the last time I did that she quite literally pushed me out of her bedroom. I don’t want to know what will happen again.”

“Okay, what about you Kat?” the green queen proposed.

“I guess I can do it. She’s never been one to lose her cool on me.” It was decided that the youngest queen would try to peek into the soul of her maternal figure. The five finished cleaning up the table before they cleared the room to give Katherine a chance to talk to Jane.

\--

“Hey Mum,” the pink haired queen settled down on the couch next to the blonde. “What’re you watching?” When Jane didn’t respond, it was quite clear she wasn’t actually watching whatever show was playing. Lost in thought, the third queen shook her head to herself. “Mum?” Kat tried again, nudging her slightly.

“Hmm,” the silver queen sighed before snapping to. “Oh! Hey Kit. Sorry I guess I just got distracted by uh-” Jane glanced at the television to see what was playing. “-the beautiful house.”

“Yeah,” Kat snorted. “What’s wrong? You seem off today.”

“Nothing’s wrong dear.” Jane fixed her posture and tried to let a smile wash over her face.

“It doesn’t look like nothing. Did something happen?” the fifth queen prodded the blonde in the ribs playfully.

“Nothing has happened. I promise.”

“Well then, what’s wrong?” she asked again.

“Kat, nothing’s wrong. I promise you. I just wanted to watch some television is all.”

“You weren’t even watching it,” the fifth queen pointed out daringly. “Please, just tell me what’s wrong. I want to help you.”

“Katherine Howard Seymour,” Jane’s tone got scarily calm as she took a deep breath. “Nothing is wrong at the moment, but if you ask me that question one more time something is going to be very wrong.”

“Okay fine,” Kat stood from where she was. “Sorry for caring about you I guess.” She sulked away and into her room.

\--

Not long after the others went about their days, they heard the small slamming of a door. They could only assume it was Jane or Katherine. Anna, who was particularly close with both women, ventured out of her room and saw Jane’s door was still open, but her other friend’s was shut. Sending a quick text to the other queens, save for Jane (who was still moping on the couch), she entered the room. Soon enough, the others found their way into the light pink room.

“Any word?” Cathy inquired.

“No,” Kat sighed.

“Well, what are we supposed to do?” Anne groaned.

“Just let her be,” Aragon replied. “As much as we all hate when one of us is in a bad mood, we just have to ride it out.”


	2. Harsh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner isn't the same as it usually is. Neither is the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, uh, enjoy the angst? And have a lovely day!

The six queens went about their days as they normally would- all except Jane. Dinner time had come around: a time where on a day off Jane would make a home cooked meal and revel in the time they could spend together. When the five other queens came down, they noticed no meal was on the table. It wasn’t as if they expected the blonde to make them dinner. No. They wouldn’t see it as a right. It was a privilege. But Jane prided herself on being the head cook of the house, and she expressed many times just how much she loved creating meals for them to eat.

“Is there no family dinner tonight?” Catalina treaded lightly as she entered the living room and spotted Jane in the same spot she had settled into earlier in the day.

“Didn’t feel like cooking,” Jane sighed. “I ordered Chinese. Should be here soon.”

“Oh. I could’ve cooked if you had asked.”

“I wouldn’t want to put that on you. It’s my job in the house to provide dinner.”

“It’s fair game Janey. I would’ve done it. Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry for dear.”

When the food came, Aragon went to get the door, but Jane just sighed and held up a hand to indicate she could get it. After putting all of the food out in the queens’ designated spots, she sighed and hollered for them before gathering her food and slumping back down in her spot on the couch. 

“Are you not eating with us?”

“I just figured since I’m not in the best mood you’d all enjoy dinner more without me,” Jane admitted sheepishly.

“That’s not-”

“It’s fine.” Jane held up a hand again and opened her food in the living room.

“Do you want us to eat in the living room with you?”

Jane shrugged before mumbling a timid, “No thank you.”

Dinner was silent in both rooms. 

Jane stayed glued to the couch for the rest of the night, watching as the others retreated to their bedrooms. All but one queen had returned to their bedrooms- Catherine of Aragon. The first queen took it upon herself to pick up the cleaning that Jane had forwent. 

“I’m heading to bed.” the golden queen looked towards Jane. 

“Thank you for your help today.”

“It’s not a big deal,” the older queen shrugged. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight love,” Jane stood from her spot and walked over to the hispanic before hugging her tightly. She let the woman go and assumed her spot back on the couch, although there was a small shine in her eyes.

It took the blonde a few minutes to collect herself and her thoughts before she decided she had enough of the day. A good night’s sleep might help the slump she found herself in. She may have ditched all of the other chores of the day, but there was one chore (who was she kidding? It was never a chore) she would absolutely never skip out on: saying goodnight to each of the girls and kissing their foreheads. She made her rounds, leaving Katherine for last. Most nights, she would leave the fifth queen’s room with the younger woman in tow. 

“Kit?” She knocked on the door lightly.

“Come in,” a soft voice replied. The third queen opened the door and stepped in awkwardly.

“I uh,” she stuttered. “I just came to say I’m heading to my room for the night. Are you staying in here tonight, or would you like to come with me?”

“I’m fine Jane.” she waved an awkward hand and forced a smile.  _ Not Mum? That stung. _ “I don’t know why you’ve been sad today, but I hope you feel better in the morning.”

Deciding not to deny the mood she had been in all day, the silver queen quietly replied, “Thanks.” She made her way over to the pink haired queen and kissed her forehead. “Goodnight hun.”

“Mhm. Goodnight. Love you,” Katherine leant into the kiss before making herself comfortable in her bed again.

“Love you too.” The older queen lingered at the door to see if her daughter would change her mind at the last second and join her in the silver room, but there was no such luck. “Light on or off?”

“I’ll probably just finish this video I’m watching and head to bed, so if you wouldn’t mind flicking the light off,” the fifth queen requested. Jane flicked the light off and retreated into the grey room.

It wasn’t as warm she noted as she settled under her blankets for the night. Of course, it was most likely because she didn’t have any of the other queens  (read as: Katherine) in the room with her.

_ “Good morning,” Jane smiled as she walked into the kitchen that morning. _

_ “What the fuck do you want?” Katherine sneered at her from the sink. _

_ Jane blinked in shock. What had gotten into her daughter? “I just wanted to say good morning?” _

_ “When did you start caring about us again?” Anna laughed bitterly. _

_ “What are you-” The blonde was so confused. Was this all because of how she acted yesterday? She would make sure she didn’t miss out on her chores that day. _

_ “You haven’t been the same since...” Catherine trailed off, being the only one seemingly acting typically. _

_ “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” The third queen said earnestly. _

_ “There’s no way you don’t know.” _

_ “I really don’t know what you’re talking about.” _

_ “Jane it’s 7:30 in the morning. Are you still drunk?” Jane hardly drank, and when she did it was a glass of wine- two at most. _

_ “No?” _

_ “There’s no way you’re awake this early and not,” Kat let out a full-on belly laugh in disbelief. “Go the fuck back to bed and sleep it off like you always do.” _

_ “What on Earth are you talking about? I’m usually up by now!” Jane argued back softly. “It was only yesterday that I skipped out on chores, and I promise I won’t let them slide today.” _

_ “The last time you did chores was six months ago. Jesus, you must really be more in your cup than we all thought,” Anne sighed. “Are you really that out of touch with reality?” _

Catherine of Aragon hadn't gone to bed knowing that with the tension in the house, someone was bound to wake up with a nightmare. She wasn’t entirely sure that Jane would be up to comforting anyone after seeing how her day played out. What she didn’t expect was for the person who would need comforting that night was Jane.

_ “I’m not! I’m not! Please.” She didn’t exactly know what she was pleading about. “Please believe me Kitty, love.” The third queen made her way over to her daughter who backed herself into the corner and made herself as small as possible. _

_ “Get the fuck away from me,” the fifth queen hissed. _

_ “I’m sorry... I’m sorry.” The silver queen grabbed her keys and ran out of the house. _

_ Immediately, the others ran out of the house too, Anna of Cleves wrestling her to the ground. _

_ “You’re not driving drunk! Haven’t you learned your lesson?” She ripped the keys out of her hand and allowed Cathy to pick up a kicking and screaming Jane Seymour. _

The Jane in her bed tossed and turned loudly, letting out a small whine, but Catherine had attuned her ears to any small sounds someone in the house may make. She listened in for a moment more, but whoever had been making the noise stopped. She settled back down in her bed but kept an ear out for any more whimpers or whines.

_ “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” _

_ “You’re telling me you don’t remember the man you killed because you thought driving drunk to go get more tequila was a good idea?” Katherine spit. “You fucking loser.” _

_ “I- I what?” Jane sputtered out. _

_ “Stop acting like you’re innocent. You stopped giving a shit about any of us after that one day you skipped out on your chores, and then you drank your life away. You ruined the show, and we fucking closed after you showed up drunk, insisting you could go on before tripping during my song and cracking your head open. Or do you not remember that either? Fucking bitch.” Was that what her life had dissolved to?  _

_ “I would never-” _

_ “Well you did. You were like a mother to me, and then you cracked. You stopped giving a shit about any of us. Fuck you.” The harshness in Katherine’s voice was enough to shake Jane awake, letting out a rather loud cry in the process. _

“What the-?” Aragon swung her legs over the side of the bed to put on her slippers and made her way out of her room. She stopped and listened outside of Jane’s door before she could hear the blonde muttering affirmations to herself. 

“Deep breaths Jane,” the woman in distress said quietly to herself. “It was just a dream. Just because you skipped out on one day’s work does not mean you’re going to-” she choked down a sob. She couldn’t even bear the idea of killing someone with her car. “Come on, you’re fine. Get yourself together.”

Confirming the whimpers were probably from the grey room, she shuffled down to the pink room where the fifth queen was.

“Katherine, I know you aren’t especially happy with your mother at the moment, but she needs you,” Catalina left it at that and went to tend to the third queen in her room.


	3. Who can?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catherine and Katherine confront Jane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi loves! Have a lovely day!

“Jane?” Catherine opened the door without being let in. Seeing the blonde woman who was usually so full of life and love and hope so broken was not an image she enjoyed. “It’s Catherine. Are you alright?”

“Come on Jane. Get yourself together. You’re fine, it’s fine,” the third queen continued whispering to herself, completely unaware of the other woman in the room.

“Jane,” Catherine cooed as she sat on the bed next to the silver queen. Feeling the bed dip shook the panicked woman, sending her into more of a panic.

“Holy fuck,” Jane breathed, eyes blown wide with panic. “Please don’t hurt me, please don’t hurt me. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” The woman knew what she had experienced was a dream, but it had felt so real.

“Janey, what are you talking about?” 

“Jane?” A tired Katherine stood at the door, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

“No, no, no, no, no,” the queen in question mumbled repeatedly as she backed herself against her headboard. “Please, I’m sorry.”  _ What on Earth was she apologizing for?  _

“Mija, it’s just Kitty.”

“No. No, she’s going to hurt me.” The two women who had entered the room didn’t expect Jane to be fearful of her own daughter.

Kat wracked her brain for the different ways that Jane could calm her down before speaking softly,” Mum, it’s Kitty. It’s Monday, and you fell asleep. You had a nightmare. You’re in our house, and you’re safe. Can I come closer?” There was no evidence that the blonde queen had even heard her.

“Jane dear,” Catalina tried. “It’s Aragon.” She laid a gentle hand overtop of the shaking one. “If you can hear me, please squeeze my hand.” The faintest grip could be felt. 

“Did she?” Catherine nodded. 

“Can you try again querida?” This time, a firm squeeze was felt. “Wonderful. Keep doing that honey. You’re going to be okay. It’s just me and your daughter here, and you’re safe.”

“Mum?” Kat moved a little closer, feeling like maybe she could be near her mother without sending her into a frenzy again. When Jane didn’t scramble for the headboard again, the fifth queen knew she could sit on the bed.

Almost instantly though, Jane’s breath quickened again, and the grip on Aragon’s hand had gotten tighter. 

“Five things you can see, four things you can feel, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste,” Kat recited to the woman who often said the exact same thing to her.

“Come on love. You’re okay. It’s okay,” the gold queen encouraged her.

“I, uh,” Jane started to look around, eyes still filled with panic. “I c-can see Aragon, K-Kitty, m-my water glass, b-blankets, and uh,” she trailed off.

“Come on mum. Just one more, and then we can do what we feel.”

Jane took a deeper breath than she had in quite a few minutes. “I see m-my desk.”

“Great job Jane,” Catalina smiled. “Can you take another breath and tell us what you can feel?”

“Mhm,” Jane drew in a deep breath. “Your warm hand, my soft blankets, uh... my pajamas against my skin, and uhm, I don’t know what else.”

“That’s okay Mum,” Kat assured her maternal figure. “What about, hm...” She opened her arms for her mother to fall into if she so desired. For the amount of fear that remained in the woman’s eyes, she surprisingly fell into the open arms.

“I feel your arms around me,” Jane sighed as she moved in closer to the youngest queen.

“Okay good. And three things you can hear?” Katherine persisted. The oldest and youngest queens shared a look, smiling softly at each other. They made a good team when the blonde needed help.

“I can hear both of your breathing...” Jane looked at the two with curious eyes. It was different to see the woman who always looked so maternal staring up at her daughter with childish eyes. “Does that count as two?”

“I don’t think so mija,” Catherine stifled a laugh. “Two more things.”

“I can hear Annie running the water in the bathroom. And, I can hear, uhm... I don’t know,” she finished.

“What about my voice Mum?” Kat suggested.

“Yeah, I uh, can hear your voice now.”

“And two things you can smell?”

“I can smell your shampoo and Lina’s laundry detergent.”

“And one thing you can taste, Janey?” the first queen asked. 

“The wine I had at dinner.”

“Good job Mum. Are you a little more relaxed?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry for causing trouble. I’m okay now,” Jane shied away from the youngest queen. “I’m good. Sorry.”

“Janey,” Lina sighed. “It’s pretty clear you’re not.”

“We just want to help,” Kat tried to assure her maternal figure.

“I’m sorry I didn’t do the cleaning today,” Jane breathed out.

“Is that what this is about honey?” Catherine stared at the blonde in front of her. The woman in question could only nod.

“You know we don’t care, right? We just wanted to make sure you were okay. It’s not like you to skip out on cleaning the house,” Kat said.

“But it’s my job to-”

“No. It’s all of our responsibility to keep the house in check. I can’t believe we let you do all of it for this long,” Catalina admitted.

“No, but I’m the Mum of the household. It’s my job.”

“You might be the mum of the household, but it's all our duty. We’re all grown women Mum.”

“It’s more than that,” Jane admitted shyly. When the two women with her stayed silent, urging her on, she continued. “Whenever I see other mothers around town, they’re all dressed to the nines and happily going about their days. They all seem like they’re doing it all and they’re doing it just fine, and they’re fine. And, I’m just... not. I’m not always fine. I’m never really fine. And I thought maybe just skipping out on my chores for the day would help me relax and feel better, but it didn’t. I felt worse after watching you-” she gestured towards the gold queen. “-clean what I should have, and I snapped at you-” she looked at her daughter. “-and then I had this horrid, horrid dream.”

“About?” Both queens asked.

“How I skipped out on my cleaning one day, and the next thing I knew, it was six months later. The show had closed, I had killed someone drunk driving, and you all hated me,” the blonde shrugged casually, but the tears in her eyes gave away her emotion.

“Is that why you looked so terrified of me?” Kat was afraid of her answer. Jane nodded slightly, a faceful of embarrassment.

“I’m never going to be the mothers I see on the streets. I always feel like there’s something to do or fix or be, and I’m never going to live up to the expectations. I have so many things to do on my to-do list in a day, and it’s nearly impossible for me to get it all done; even when I stay up all hours of the night and get less sleep than Cathy. And then, I get cranky. Even if nothing in particular has happened, I get moody. But, because I’m Mum, I have to-”

“You don’t have to keep it all at bay. You can be honest with us about your feelings Janey.”

“I have to. I have to pretend like everything is fine, and I have everything together because,” Jane took a deep breath, finally allowing the newly appearing tears to fall. “If I can’t manage it, well who can?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No happy ending here. At least not from me. You can always imagine that it's a happy ending, but I needed some angst. We love a good projection fic.


End file.
